


All The Things That You Have Lost

by redamancyy



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Based off of a writing prompt, Cemetery, Cold, F/F, Rain, Roses, not really fluff but kind of?, slight angst, stealing flowers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-19
Updated: 2019-10-19
Packaged: 2020-12-23 20:41:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,551
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21087515
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redamancyy/pseuds/redamancyy
Summary: Adora always steals flowers from a seemingly random rosebush on her way to the cemetery. But when she’s finally caught, she’s not sure how to explain where she’s going.





	All The Things That You Have Lost

**Author's Note:**

> This was based off of a writing prompt :p

It was another bleary morning— clouds making their presence known through the light mists they gave off, the dead grass wet with dew. The cold seeped in through the cracks in windows, settling on the beds and in the floorboards.

Adora felt the chill in her bones, the ache creeping down her spine as she finished her coffee. She sat at her usual spot in the shop at the corner, in the wobbly table by the window. The blinds were half-drawn, but she could still see the wet sidewalks and the occasional pair of shoes that came shuffling down it.

The coffee was cold, too. She finished the last of it and stood, too tired to even think of getting a refill. Adora usually brought a second cup of coffee with her when she made this trip, but the bitter air sapped her strength even as she woke up.

Almost every day for the past few weeks, she’d been making the trip down to the cemetery at the edge of the city. Today was the coldest, a reminder that with the coming winter it will soon be too cold and wet to comfortably make the journey.

Adora didn’t mind. She had grown numb to the cold a long time ago.

She pushed out the glass door of the shop and peered up at the sky. It might rain soon— she couldn’t remember what kind of clouds were looming above her now, but it didn’t matter. She’d be in and out, along her usual route.

———

The way to the cemetery wasn’t a long one. She had to walk through the streets of her neighborhood, home to the people the others called “The Horde,” and cut through the lavish street of Bright Moon. The houses were much nicer, all pastels and white brick and flowers. 

There was a particular house that was home to the most beautiful rosebushes— when Adora made the trip, she always picked some, holding them delicately as she walked to the graveyard. She never saw who lived in that house, as she always passed by quickly enough and the curtains were always drawn. 

She slowed and stopped once she reached the roses, automatically scanning for the best ones. She selected three— one was slightly wilted on one side, but it would do. Adora began to start off again, then halted as someone shouted at her.

She turned around and saw a girl coming out of the house, fuming.

Oops.

She looked to be about Adora’s age, albeit a little shorter. Or a lot shorter. Her hair was cut short and dyed shades of pink and purple, and she was wearing a purple jumper with more glitter than Adora thought she’d ever seen. The girl came to a stop in front of Adora, her hands on her hips.

Unsure what to do, Adora held the roses carefully, as if shielding them from the angry stranger. The girl huffed and glared at them.

“So it’s you,” she said, indignant. “You who’s been stealing my roses every day. Who are they for, huh?”

“Um...” Adora looked down at her feet, unable to answer. How could she? 

The girl groaned slightly, then looked back to the rosebushes. “Look,” she finally said, “I don’t know why you’re stealing my roses. But my mom says everyone has a reason, so what is it? Are you stealing them for someone?”

Adora nodded, then immediately knew it was a mistake. 

“Well, then I’m coming with you.”

Adora blinked. “What?”

“Whoever they are, they better be pretty enough to be worth thievery. I’m coming with.” When Adora did not move, she pushed on her shoulder, forcing her to start back down the sidewalk. The girl stomped next to her in her purple boots.

There was little conversation as the two of them rounded the corner. Adora studied the roses, picking at the thorns on the side. She wondered what the girl would do once she figured out where they were going.

Next to her, the girl sighed. “I’m Glimmer.”

Adora took a moment to realize she had spoke, then answered with her own name.

Glimmer scuffed her boots on the sidewalk, her anger clearly fading. The two of them passed by a street sign that had fairy lights wrapped around it. Adora tapped the sign, a thing she did whenever she came this way. The sign was wet. And cold.

“I’ve never been this way,” Glimmer stated, a slight edge in her voice. Although not explosive anymore, Adora could still hear the annoyance in her voice.

“I always come this way,” Adora replied. “With the... flowers.”

Glimmer made a little “hmph” in response, looking at the cold clouds above. Adora sighed, nervous. Only one more street.

The rest of the walk was silent, the air getting more tense. Despite the company, Adora felt the familiar melancholy of the trip settle into her, like a blanket that makes her heart ache. Last corner.

The two girls approached the gate to the cemetery. It didn’t look how it usually did in cartoons, with the looming sign and sharp, black spikes. It was just a regular picket fence, with the paint peeling in places. Glimmer gasped in realization.

Adora reached around and unlocked it, swinging open the gate. The ground was mushy. Behind her, Glimmer was practically radiating sorrow, her brow furrowed in a dozen different emotions. Adora tried her best to ignore her as she wound around the tombstones.

At the edge of the cemetery sat the grave she came for. Kneeling down, she brushed away the dirt on the stone, revealing the silver letters underneath. 

It was her mother’s grave. 

She’d never met her parents before— she grew up in a boarding school with the other kids who’d been abandoned by fate. About a month ago, however, she’d learned that her own mother had been buried in this cemetery, in the city she’d grown up in.

Since then, Adora had made it a routine to visit the grave almost every day, except when she had work. In a way, it felt like she was somehow making up for all the years of her life she spent without her mom.

Now, as she set down the stolen roses on the damp earth, Glimmer knelt next to her, remorse strewn across her face. She softly brushed her fingertips across the letters etched in the stone, tracing the lines of a name neither of them had the privilege to speak.

“Who was it?” Glimmer whispered. Adora had never cried in front of other people, but she drew a shuddering breath as she set down the roses.

“My mother.” Thankfully, her voice didn’t shake. A raindrop fell from the sky onto the stone. “I never met her, but I learned that she was buried here, so I started...” Her voice cut out. How embarrassing.

Glimmer placed a hand on her shoulder, comforting her. Adora flinched, then turned back to the roses.

“I’m sorry,” Glimmer said, her voice soft and without any trace of her previous annoyance. “I didn’t know.”

“It’s not your fault.”

“I lost my dad when I was little,” Glimmer admitted, removing her hand from Adora’s shoulder. “My mom talks about him all the time. I couldn’t imagine losing her too.”

“Thanks.” Another raindrop fell onto the ground.

“No— my point is, that takes strength.” While Glimmer spoke, Adora kept her gaze firmly on the grave, sitting cross-legged on the cold earth. “I’m... trying to say I’m sorry. For your loss, and also... for the flowers. I shouldn’t have been such a... a jerk about it.”

“No,” Adora shook her head, voice wavering the tiniest bit. _No, not now_, she thought. “I’m sorry for stealing. It was wrong of me for taking them without asking.”

“Still, I could have been nicer.”

“And I could have asked.”

There was a silence as the two girls smiled at each other, a certain sadness shared. Like they both felt the ache Adora felt whenever she knelt by the grave.

Rain began to fall then, as if the sky were crying over the unspoken sorrow of the pair. Adora looked sadly down at the roses, knowing the watery death that soon awaited them. Glimmer placed her hand on Adora’s shoulder again.

“Come on,” she said softly, “it’s starting to rain.”

———

The next morning wasn’t quite as cold. Wet, sure, but the sun finally peeked out of the clouds at the horizon, casting its glow across the gleaming streets.

Adora had considered changing her route in case Glimmer was still mad, but she walked by the house anyway. 

Glimmer was standing outside, a bouquet of flowers in her hand. They were wrapped in crinkly plastic, and contained an assortment of roses— all different colors. 

“What’s this for?” Adora asked, knowing full well what it was.

Glimmer grinned and held out the flowers for Adora to take. “I’ll come with you again— if it’s okay, I mean. I just wanted to say sorry.”

Adora thought for a moment. “I...”

“If you even want company, I mean—“

“Okay,” she took the flowers, holding them gently. “Yeah, I guess I could use some company.”

Somehow, Glimmer smiled even wider, and the two splashed in the leftover puddles down the street. The sunshine didn’t splash with them, but shone nonetheless.

**Author's Note:**

> :)
> 
> Ty for reading, hope you enjoyeddd
> 
> Title is from “It Comes Back To You” by Imagine Dragons :)))
> 
> (I think)


End file.
